We just had an army birthday party for my 8 y/o son. I got some ideas from this site and added others. The invitations were marked as top secret on the envelope, and I copied and pasted a seal from the internet for the Department of Defense. They were typed on green marble-colored paper purchased from OfficeMax with the letterhead of the Department of the Army on top. The invitees were told that their presence was essential to the success of the 8th Birthday Party Mission, and were asked to please accept this challenge. They were to report to the ________ Family Military Base. They were told that uniforms weren't required, but camouflage would be very proper if worn. Everyone commented on the "authentic-like" invitations. As the children arrived they were met by uniformed soldiers who instructed them to report to headquarters (a tent) for their assignments and gear for the mission. They were face painted with camouflage colors, given helmets and dog tags, and photographed. The birthday boy, dressed in a military uniform, was driven in on a green ATV 10-15 minutes after the party start time. The first part of the mission included building the best army plane able to sustain heavy weather conditions and combat (paper airplanes). They each flew their airplane, and prizes were given to the three planes flown the farthest. A real-life drill sargeant dressed in military clothes played the game of Sargeant Says. The losers did push-ups. That was really funny. Next, they were divided into two teams and played three games of tug-o-war, and prizes (little party favors and balloons from the dollar store) were given to the team with two out of three wins. There was also a friendly game agaist the mothers. The mothers (and fathers!!) and children really enjoyed this. We then made up a new game: Grenade Retrieval and Disposal Relay. Grenades (Camouflaged Easter eggs bought at Wal-Marts) were hidden before the party. The kids were divided into two groups and put in lines. The first of each line was to run, find a grenade, and dispose of it in camouflaged Easter baskets also purchased at Wal-Mart. The game continued until each player had gone. Prizes were again given to the winners. The best part of the party were 1. The obstacle course complete with (PT) exercises, tires to run through, potato sack jumping, and strings to crawl under; and 2. A scavenger hunt to rescue the wounded soldier-- A "wounded soldier" (having been left behind after his rescuers were ambushed) was waiting in the woods on an army cot (a beach towel would suffice). The kids had to solve three clues which led them to the wounded soldier. The kids took along a first aid kit and administered aid (applied bangages) before taking the soldier back to base. They were ambushed along the way (by parents carrying toy machine guns) but managed to escape. We even had a tank pinata purchased from Birthday Express. Before going home, each child was lined up and given certificates of completion and medals (bought in packs of three from the dollar store). After all this fun, no one wanted to stop to eat, and they really didn't want to go home. The parents stated they had just as much fun as the kids. Needless to say, the party lasted for hours.